woman and business plan

The University of West Florida College of Business Executive Mentor Program announced Carol Carlan and Dr. Katrice Albert as the two keynote speakers for the 2016 Women in Leadership Conference on March 4 in the UWF Conference Center, Building 22, on the Pensacola campus.

The conference showcases the true power of collaboration and women’s empowerment, featuring women from throughout the campus and surrounding Pensacola community.

Carol Carlan

The opening session, “Mentor Experiences that Make the Difference,” will be delivered by Carol Carlan, president of the Sacred Heart Foundation. Carlan, a graduate of Pensacola State College and the University of Florida School of Banking, has more than 35 years of experience in the financial services industry.

Her professional journey includes a variety of significant achievements, including first female president of a large Florida Panhandle bank, longest serving trustee for PSC and appointment by Gov. Jeb Bush as the inaugural chair of the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition.

Carlan has been recognized by several organizations for her work in the community, including “Business Leader of the Year” by both the Pensacola News Journal and Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce.

Dr. Katrice Albert, vice president of the University of Minnesota Office of Equity and Diversity, will close the conference with, “Power and Pearls: A Conversation on Women and Career Advancement.”

Katrice Albert

With extensive academic, diversity and community service experience, Albert writes, speaks and consults on issues of cultural competence, corporate social responsibility, educational and workforce diversity, gender and dynamics of power, the complexities of diverse populations and many more.

Serving on numerous community boards, Albert has been honored as the inaugural recipient of the Distinguished Service Award by the Kiwanis Club of LSU and an Auburn University College of Education Young Alumni of the Year; named an Outstanding Diversity in Business honoree by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal and an HBCU Digest Genesis Scholar; and recognized by the National Diversity Council as one of Louisiana’s Most Powerful and Influential Women.

She is also a graduate of the prestigious HERS Bryn Mawr Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education.

The Women in Leadership Conference gives attendees the opportunity to engage in town hall-style panel discussions in order to gain an understanding of some of the issues women face in various career paths and how important it is to align personal values with leadership behaviors.

The first panel will focus on “Leading Through Innovation,” and will be moderated by Jennifer Grove, community development manager at Gulf Power Company. Panelists include:

— Debbie Calder, executive vice president, Greater Pensacola Operations, Navy Federal Credit Union

— Dr. Sharon Heise, associate director, Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition

— Dr. Pamela Northrup, chief executive officer, Innovation Institute, and senior associate provost, University of West Florida

— Dr. Mary Mehta, chief medical officer and pediatric cardiologist, Nemours Children's Clinic

The second panel will discuss “Juggling Whilst Climbing a Mountain.” Studer Community Institute Director of Professional Development Rachel Gillette will moderate the discussion, which features the following panelists:

— Christina Doss, managing director, Saltmarsh Financial Advisors

— Lisa Reese, president and publisher, Pensacola News Journal

— Amie Remington, general counsel, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc.

— Kimberly Wyatt, news director, WEAR-TV ABC Channel 3

The conference is at capacity and has opened a wait list for those interested in attending. For more information, or to be added to the waitlist, contact the UWF Executive Mentor Program at [email protected] or 850.474.3239.